Sara Robinson & Midnight Special

As 2012 draws to a close, we'll be looking forward to the 2013 and spotlighting 13 Phoenix bands that will be making a mark on the Southwest throughout the new year. This entry comes from Melissa Fossum, zeroing in on the Tempe-based rock 'n' blues combo Sara Robinson & Midnight Special.

There's a long tradition of women dominating the blues scene, from classics like Billie Holiday and Ella Fitzgerald to a new generation of genre-defying acts such as Grace Potter and The Nocturnals and Black Carl.

These ladies have helped paved the way for soulful, heavy-hitting acts like Sara Robinson & Midnight Special, which is a local supergroup of sorts.

Video streaming by UstreamSpecial comprises members of Haffo and Allen Barton Project who met Robinson at a blues jam night at Rhythm Room three years ago.

Roughly six months ago, the band started jamming and tried their hand at an open mic night. "We started writing songs like crazy and decided to test them out one night in the battlefield a la Long Wong's open mic. We had such a good response that we have been booked solid ever since," says drummer Evan Knisely, "We knew there would be people out here who share our love for hard blues."

Specials have yet to release a physical album, though the band is currently in the studio working on an album that is due in February, just in time for the band's stop at South by Southwest.

Sara Robinson & Midnight Special are scheduled to perform Tuesday, December 25, at the Sail Inn in Tempe.